In what might be the biggest win in recent memory, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish knocked off number 20 Texas A&M 23-13. This game seemingly ended the narrative haunting the Irish since the beginning of the Brian Kelly era. That is Notre Dame is unable to win the big game. They had no problems beating teams at the same level or worse. However, when it came to playing the best teams in the country, the Irish always seemed to be unprepared and come up short.
However, with this win against the Aggies, this storyline seems to be at an end. They went into Kyle Field, one of the most hostile environments in the country, and pulled off an upset against a ranked opponent. This is a game Notre Dame lost a few years ago. Yet they’re finally at a point where they have enough talent on the roster, and coaching staff to play anyone and have a legit chance to win the game.
This win makes a playoff birth very obtainable. The rest of the Irish schedule is very easy. Their toughest remaining opponent is number 23 USC during the last game of the season. They likely go into that game undefeated and whatever the outcome of that game is will probably get a spot in the 12-team playoff. However, that’s months down the line. Here are the major takeaways from the Irish first victory of 2024.
Notre Dame Defense Is The Best in the Country
Going into this game there was a lot of hype surrounding this defense. Many experts have ranked it among the best in the country. However, this is all on paper and projections. How many times have we seen a team or player get pre-season hype only for them to come up flat? Thankfully for Notre Dame, this wasn’t the case.
The defense, especially the secondary lived up to and exceeded every expectation that had been set for them. They completely shut down Texas A&M’s offense, holding them to 246 total yards. This means A&M only averaged 3.6 yards per play. This is the lowest total yards for the Aggies since losing to App State in 2022. They also held the A&M passing attack to only 100 passing yards. This performance cements the Irish as one of the best in the country. It’s the type of performance that puts the nation on notice and strikes fear in how other teams will play against this defense.
The biggest surprise of this Notre Dame defense was who was the standout. Normally people expected Benjamin Morrison and Xavier Watts to be the standouts from this game. However, that honor goes to Adon Shuler. Shuler made this first impact play when he picked off Conner Weigman early in the second quarter. It felt like he was involved in every aspect of the defense. He was constantly playing lockdown in coverage as well as a major supporting piece in the Irish run defense.
Riley Leonard Gutsy’s Debut
The biggest storyline surrounding Notre Dame was how Riley Leoanrd was going to play. Sure he had put up good numbers for Duke, however, would those numbers translate when playing for a big-time program? There were also questions surrounding how his ankle injury was going to affect him. Would he still be able to be the dual-threat QB we’re used to seeing after so many surgeries? However, Leonard’s performance put to bed concerns about whether he was the right guy for this offense.
Now the stat line doesn’t jump off the page. He was 18/30 for 158 yards and rushed for 63. He didn’t record a touchdown at all during this game. However, what made Leonard’s performance so good was his ability to lead and his competitiveness. The picturesque moment of this was early in the third quarter when Leonard came up just short of making the first down. Now every replay and picture shows that he crossed the first down line. However, regardless of the outcome seeing him claw for every inch and throw up the first down signal before he was tackled showed how much of a competitor he is. As well as how badly he wants to win.
It’s also impressive that Leonard didn’t commit a turnover. With an inexperienced offensive line as well as a hostile environment, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. Which would lead to a player committing simple mistakes. However, Leonard was able to stay composed and not get overwhelmed by what was going on. Which is what you need in a starting quarterback.
Thanks for reading! Credit for my feature image goes to Jack Gorman. You can find more college football content at Belly Up Sports and follow me on Twitter/X.
